Today is World Tourism Day. In 2016 over 65 million people travelled to Africa. Travel is the 3rd largest export industry in the world after chemicals and fuels.
Some facts:
- In 2016 1235 million travellers crossed international borders in one single year.
- By 2030, this 1.2 billion will become 1.8 billion.
The question asked by Taleb Rifai, Secretary-General, World Tourism Organization is:
“As we celebrate World Tourism Day 2017, is how we can enable this powerful global transformative force, these 1.8 billion opportunities, to contribute to make this world a better place and to advance sustainable development in all its 5 pillars”.
The five pillars of sustainable development are:
1. Economic: yielding inclusive growth;
2. Social: bringing decent jobs and empowering communities;
3. Environmental: preserving and enriching the environment and addressing climate change;
4. Cultural: celebrating and preserving diversity, identity, and tangible and intangible culture, and
5. Peace: as an essential prerequisite for development and progress.
Happy World Tourism Day.
